The NSW Greyhound Breeders, Owners and Trainers’ Association are delighted to announce today the Group 1 Paws of Thunder feature race will be renamed in honour of an icon of the sport, legendary owner and breeder, the late Paul Wheeler.
The GBOTA is also announcing that the event will have a new home on the racing calendar moving from late January to now be run in December.
Mr Wheeler, who died in 2021 was one of the industry’s innovators and acknowledged as a champion in the development and the professionalisation of greyhound racing in NSW and Australia.
After consultation with the Wheeler Family, the Paws of Thunder, one of the most revered races in the State will be renamed The Paul Wheeler Simply the Best.
GBOTA chief executive officer Daniel Weizman made the formal announcement in Sydney this week.
Mr Wheeler’s career spanned more than half a century. In 2016, he was inducted into the Australian Greyhound Racing Hall of Fame. He was an innovator in a number of areas including breeding.
He was involved in greyhound racing from his childhood and was Australia’s largest breeder for more than three decades.
“This is a fitting tribute to one of the industry’s great innovators,” Mr Weizman said.
“The GBOTA is proud to recognise the contribution of Paul Wheeler and the renaming of the Paws of Thunder is a lasting tribute and acknowledgement of the legacy of one of the greats in the greyhound racing industry.
“Paul Wheeler was a straight shooter – who was vocal in criticising decisions with which he disagreed, but also open to praising them when he saw their merit.
“Paul was at the forefront of the fight to save the industry when then Premier Mike Baird tried to ban greyhound racing in NSW. Being part of the campaign to save the greyhound industry is one of his crowning achievements,” Mr Weizman said.
The Paul Wheeler Simply the Best will be a Group 1 race and will feature many of the top sprinters in Australia.
The Paul Wheeler Simply the Best will take place on 21 December 2024 at Wentworth Park with the heats contested the previous week on 14 December 2024.
It will be part of the NSW GBOTA Christmas family extravaganza, bringing together the community for an end of the year celebration and capping a year of greyhound racing.
In addition on the night, The Collerson, in honour of respected greyhound racing journalist Jeff Collerson will be run, along with the Christmas Cheer for Stayers.
In 2020, Jeff Collerson was inducted into the Hall of Fame after dedicating over 60 years of service to the industry.
